A New Fiscal Policy Unit
Syria's Finance Minister Muhammad Yasir Barniah announced on 6 July 2026 the creation of a Macro Fiscal Policy Unit inside the Ministry of Finance, describing it as part of a broader effort to modernize public financial management. The announcement was made through the minister's official account, and he cast the new body as a way to strengthen the ministry's ability to plan, forecast, and manage the state's finances.
The minister said the unit was launched to build the technical capacity needed for what he called "effective economic and financial management."
Cooperation With the IMF
The unit was established in technical cooperation with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). "We launched this unit in technical cooperation with the International Monetary Fund, appreciating their cooperation, which forms an essential pillar for its success," the minister said.
The involvement of the IMF reflects working cooperation between the ministry and the international lender on budgeting and fiscal governance. The minister described that cooperation as an essential pillar of the unit's success.
Part of a 2026-2030 Strategy
The minister linked the new unit to the ministry's 2026-2030 strategy, which aims to improve forecasting so that the government can prepare its annual budgets on firmer analytical ground. Stronger forecasting, he indicated, is meant to support more stable and more predictable public finances.
A medium-term fiscal framework, a multi-year plan that sets out expected revenue and spending beyond a single budget year, is among the tools the unit is expected to develop.
Guiding the 2027 Budget
Among the unit's first tasks is drawing up a medium-term fiscal framework to guide preparation of the 2027 budget and the years that follow, in a way the ministry says should support economic and financial stability and sustainable development.
The minister framed stronger fiscal governance as a priority, saying that entrenching "effective, transparent, and honest" financial governance is an investment that ranks high on the ministry's agenda.